Method of embossing hats



March 5, F. R KLlNG METHOD OF EMBOSSING HATS Filed Sept. 6, 1952 Emaentor Z 77. K4 uve Cittomeg Patented Mar. 5, 1935 f UNITED STATES PATENTAO F CE*-+ 1,993,673 METHOD oF EMBOSSINGHATS Ferdinand R. Kling, New York, Y. Application September 6, 1932, Serial No. 631,905 7 1 Claim.

This invention is directed to an improvement in hats, and particularly to a method of embossing articlesmade of fur-felt and more particularly hats, with any type of design, and with special regard to the clearness and sharpness of such design.

Felt hats, with which the invention is more particularly concerned, are usually made with different finish, one for example with an ordinary smooth finish and another with a so-called silky hair-like finish. In providing the silky finish, a steel brush is used on the surface of the hat, pulling the rair to a long silky finish.

The primary object of the invention is a method by which the design or embossing is presented in the original finish of the hat surface, thereby determining by the selected original finish for the hat surface, the appearance of the design.

In carrying out the method, the hat with the desired character of surface is drawn over-the usual block and a stencil of the requisite outline is fitted snugly over the surface of the hat. The stencil is required to fit'snugly to the surface of the hat and must be of a character to remain unaffected by the subsequent operations.

The block with the hat and applied stencil is 1 then placed on an appropriate base and rapidly revolved. During revolution, the hat, or more particularly those surface portions of the hatnot covered by the stencil, is subjected to the action of sand under pressure, commonly a sand blast.

The exposed surfaces of the hat are thus cut away evenly and uniformly, and when sufficiently reduced, the stencil may be removed, leaving the design prominently standing out in the original surface appearance.

If the original surface of the hat being treated is of the silky finish type, the surface not covered by the stencil is cut away by the sand blast, reducing or eliminating the silky fibres, while that portion of the hat surface covered by the stencil, and of course protected from the sand blast, remains with the silky finish.

If the surface of the hat being treated is of a smooth finish, the portions not covered by the stencil are worn away by the sand blast,-so that on removing the stencil the design stands out from the cut-away intervening portions of the surface. As the character of the surface in treating smooth finish hats is not materially changed by the sand blast, the effect of the cutting away by the sand blast causes the design to stand out as if out into the hat.

Thus in either finish of the hat surface, the

part making up the design is protected against the sand of .the sand blast, .and the intervening parts cut away to leave the design. Thus the character of the design can be predetermined, in that the actual design outline will always be that of the surface of the hat before the present method is carried out, and as this hat surface can be changed, the actual design surface can be provided as desired.

If the hat surface is of silky finish, the design will be of silky appearance when completed, while the design appearance can be changed by properly changing the surface of the hat before applying the stencil. Thus any style or color can be given to the design, as all that is required is to give the surface of the hat before treatment the finish and color, or either, which it is desired that the design shall have. I

As illustrating the design method, reference is had to the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig.1 is a perspective view of a hat finished with a design according to the present method, the hat having an original silky finish.

Fig. 2 is a broken view of a stencil used to produce the design of the hat shown.

Fig. 3 is a broken view'of a portion of the hat surface, showing the stencil applied but prior to the use of the sand blast.

Fig. 4 is a broken sectional view, showing the raised relation of the design.

In the illustration the hat 1 is to be drawn over the usual hat block (not shown) and a stencil 2, which may of course be of any design, fitted snugly over the hat. The stencil is made up of flat narrow sections arranged to present the desired design, and will when applied to snugly fit the hat surface, thoroughly protect the portions of the hat surface immediately covered by the stencil against the action of the sand blast.

The design of the stencil illustrated is merely indicative of any stencil, the sole requirement in this particular being that the material of which the stencil is made be not seriously affected by the sand blast. Thus the stencil may be constructed of metal or rubber, or other appropriate material.

The hat on the block, with the applied stencil is then applied to a revolving base, such for example as disclosed in my pending application filed March 1'7, 1930, Serial Number 436,440, and the exposed surface is subjected to the action of sand under pressure, or a sand blast as disclosed in said application. Those portions of the surface of the hat not covered by the stencil, as for example the partsindicated at 3 in Fig. 3, will be cut away by the action of the sand, and when the sanding is completed and the stencil removed, those portions underlying and conforming to the stencil will present the desired embossed design in the original finish of the hat surface, as indicated at 4.

If the originalfinish is silky the embossed portions will present the silky appearance, while if the original finish is smooth, the portions cut away will present the design parts in relief, as if out into the hat Any original hat surface finish will be the finish of the embossed surface, thus presenting infinite variety both in finish and color if desired.

The sand blast can of course be any means by which the sand may be directed against the surface of the hat, and the abrading material employed is preferably a special sharp white crushed flint, as in the use of such there is no liability of discoloring the surface of the hat, and the method may be carried out with hats of any shade, light or dark.

The method, while parflcularly employed with felt hats, may with equal facility, accuracy, and result, be employed with any article constructed of fur-felt as, for example, pocketbooks and the like. the design or the final appearance of the design surface. The salient and important detail is that the design or embossed surface is exactly that which was the original surface of the hat when treated, so that in effect the design is not formed in or on the hat, but the hat surface is treated to leave the design.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is:-

A method of embossing hats, consisting in first giving to the hat surface a silky finish, protecting the design configuration on the hat silky finish surface, and subjecting the remaining portions of such hat silky finish surface to a stream of abrasive particles to remove such surface throughout There is no limitation to the character of said remaining portions, whereby to complete the 20 design with the original finish of the hat.

FERDINAND H. KLING. EL. 5.] 

